


Set Us Up

by catsukii



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Boys In Love, Boys' Love, Cute, Fluff and Humor, Gay Kenma Kozume, Gay Male Character, M/M, Short & Sweet, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:21:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24159553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catsukii/pseuds/catsukii
Summary: Everyone keeps trying to set us up but we've secretly been dating for years.
Relationships: Kozume Kenma/Male!Reader, Kozume Kenma/Reader
Comments: 4
Kudos: 63





	1. one x twenty

Kenma didn't pay attention in class, he would stare out at nothing for minutes on end while you watched him, sometimes catching yourself staring and there was even the occasional moment when he'd look at you, his face lacking emotion though his golden eyes were shining from the light of the window beside him. He never minded when you got caught, he often bored holes into your face too.

The half empty notebook in front of him was sitting there mindlessly, practically asking to be ignored. He didn't touch it. The class was about to end and Kenma was already reaching the apex of his patience. He was restless, his fingers twitching for the game device that you had gotten a hold of. He knew that you knew he wanted it, he wanted to play the game that you had bought for him when you both when to the city together on the weekend but he had to wait until lunch time.

You'd smile each time your eyes caught him. Sitting a row behind behind, your desk being situated in the middle while his was near the wall. Your elbow rested on the table and your chin was on your palm, your fingers hiding the small smile that ceased to be wiped off of your face every time you reveled in the way his blonde hair would move, falling over in front of his eyes when he didn't bother moving it, occasionally sneaking an innocently adorable look at you as well as to the clock on the wall.

He'd catch the sight of you writing notes, appearing so wise yet so charming in a way that made Kenma grow breathless for a few seconds. He secretly adored watching you and he'd look away defiantly when you look up at him quickly to smirk his way.

The bell rang, Kenma tirelessly place this things away in his bag as you appeared by the side of his desk. You stood there, watching him again with a smile and he only looked when you hadn't spoken, "Let's go to the vending machine."

A smooth smile directed at Kenma subconsciously made him speed up, placing his things in his bag quicker so that he could get up and let you lead him out the class for lunch. He stuck close to you, his eyes slowly drifting to your hand that swung idly by your side and then to the playing device you kept securely in your pocket.

He didn't say anything, he just kept his head down while making sure that you never left his sight too. He didn't realise that you were also keeping an eye on him as well when you took him to the vending machine around the corner of the hall.

"Oh, there's Yamamoto and Fukunaga."

Kenma looked up at the sound of your voice again, looking at your stoic face for a moment before watching as the two said males appeared by the side of the vending machine, greeting Kenma in a rowdy manner that had him sneaking a closer step towards you as you fished the money from your pocket.

"KENMA!"

He almost swooped an arm around the setters shoulder though the latter dodged him swiftly, he found himself behind you as the money was placed in the machine and you pressed to buttons to watch a sweet bread fall out slowly. You leaned over to grab it and then used one arm to lead Kenma away to which he gladly followed.

"Don't be so loud, Yamamoto-san. Kenma, I'm going to the canteen - do you want to come?"

Fukunaga had followed when Yamomoto stilled against the side of the vending machine, he gaped and stared helplessly to his arm that had been dodged like the plague. He left Yamomoto to follow like a child, whining about Kenma's cold shoulder but stopped when the normally quiet wing-spiker spoke up, "Kenma-san... You don't have your playing device."

"[Name] was holding it for me.."

"Cause you wouldn't stop playing it before class. It would be worse if the teacher took it so you couldn't play for the rest of the day than just going without it for one period." You gave him a pointed look and he sighed defeatedly, halting after bumping into your shoulder when you stopped.

You observed the crowd at the cafeteria and Kenma also saw it, his shoulders sagging though you turned and spoke to Yamomoto and Fukunaga, "Stay with Kenma, I'm going to buy some food."

You left without hearing a reply and Yamamoto stuck by the wall as Kenma looked at you leave with a certain longing to have you back at his side, you disappeared in the crowd and then the hot-headed ace realised something and spoke aloud, "Didn't [Name] already get food from the vending machine? He better hurry up so we can find Kuroo."

Both boys were quiet, waiting for you to come back and when you did, you had something warm that heated your hands pleasantly as you smiled at the way Kenma's eyes visibly lit up when he caught sight of you, of what was in your hands.

Above your sweet bread, you held the food you had bought for Kenma and he took it gratefully, unwrapping it so he could nibble the crust of the mildly hot apple pie; his favourite.

"Waaah, [Name], why don't you ever buy food for us?!" The boy exploded, gaining attention in the hall when the four of your began walking again, Kenma caught sight of Kuroo at the other end of the hall, the black-haired captain smirked at the sight of Kenma and yourself walking so closely together as his other team members walked behind.

You only gave Yamamoto a look though he still whined, pouting at you, "I only wanted to get food for Kenma."

Your answer was short and sweet, like the apple pie Kenma found himself indulging in, Yamomoto looked at you without a reply but he still found himself glancing at Kenma and yourself as a collective, wondering why the setter was so close to your side that you were both touching - but completely okay with it, like you were totally comfortable.

It wasn't something he'd call weird per se, he along with his team had seen the close contact you had with Kenma and they knew it was partly because of the fact that Kuroo, Kenma and yourself went to the same middle school but it always looked as if Kenma and yourself were much closer than with Kuroo - in an intimate kind of way.

"Thank you... [Name]"

The obnoxiously loud ace almost stomped his feet, waving his hands towards himself desperately, "But why?! I want food as well, [Name]!" A growl almost coming from his mouth as he sneered at you.

"Kenma is special to me."

Kuroo finally approached them with Yaku and Kai, making conversation about practise this afternoon and Yamomoto was left to ponder what you said so easily that had the tiniest colour of pink appearing on his setters' cheeks.


	2. two x twenty

After school, Yamomoto had temporarily forgotten about his unspoken suspicions when he was too busy getting hyped up for volleyball practise. He stormed in head first with two hands in the pockets of his shorts but stopped, eyes widening at the sight before him.

Two people were standing together, incredibly close as one of them sat on the bench on the side of the court, their fingers tapping away on their phone as the other person stood before them, in between the seated persons legs as they touched their hair.

Kenma, the setter of Nekoma and also the 'heart' and 'brain' of the team had been on the bench with his legs open a little so his best friend could situate himself there. You on the other hand, couldn't help feeling the butterflies when Kenma let you touch his hair that was half brown and half blonde. It made you remember the days when his hair was completely brown and then when he showed up at your house after claiming that he didn't want to 'stand out.'

Your knees touched his, often touching the inner parts of his thighs and your cheeks felt warm from the contact. The other second year male didn't look fazed at all as he held his phone further from his face than usual so you could also see what he was looking at but the only difference was that it was upside down for you.

Your fingers threaded through his hair, picking up small tresses as you moved them between your fingers or looped your fingers through his hair. He didn't flinch every time you reached for a different part of his head and you often found his head subconsciously moving towards your hand when you lost contact with him. It made you smile, continuing the actions as Kuroo stood by as he spoke with Lev on how to receive as the four of you waited until the rest of the team arrived.

Nobuyuki Kai arrived soon after, apologising to his captain promptly, "Sorry I'm a little late, I had to take worksheets to the faculty office." His stoic voice got Kuroo's attention, the latter nodding as he smiled without a care, "We're still waiting for the others, Kai, it's alright." Shouhei Fukunaga also came in, immediately heading towards the equipment closet to pull the volleyballs out in their ball cart. 

Yamomoto took the opportunity to grab Kai by the back of his white shirt and pulled him back a little, his two beady eyes not leaving the scene of the two second years as they remained in close contact in a borderline affectionate way that had the ace wondering if he had any prior knowledge on the emotions you may have towards Kenma, or that he may have for you.

"Yamamoto-san, please let g-"

"Do you know why they're like that?" He was quick to cut the vice captain off and Kai only looked towards where he was indicating so that he would be able to leave. Kai didn't make a face, he just looked calm though his eyes almost looked like they were analysing the scene before him. He stepped back a little when Yamomoto finally let go and then answered, monotonously, "Perhaps they like each other.. I wouldn't know, Yamamoto-san."

He then moved his sight towards the second year, the boy with the blonde mohawk only scowled lightly as his brows were furrowed, "It isn't my business, neither is it yours."

He looked back to see three more team members approaching and moved aside from then when they all stepped in while Yamamoto felt his eyes widening, repeating the same question eagerly, "Tell me what you see there!"

Morisuke Yaku raised a brow, frowning a little at the loud shriek from his kouhai and looked to the bench to see you sitting there alone, "[Name] sitting on his- no, Kenmas' phone." He looked as if he was ready to scold the ace as Inuoka Sou and Yūki Shibayama watched the interaction as well.

Kai left, he went to help Kuroo tighten the volleyball net on the poles of either side and Kenma had taken that action as his queue to get up, leaving you with his phone to look through the memes he had been looking at with pictures of cats as well. He had recent searches of video games that you only briefly knew the name of but now you knew what you could buy for him if he ever got mad at you; which you tried your best to prevent from happening.

"No! Before, I mean before Kenma, he was sitting there and [Name] was just- just standing between his legs, touching his hair- it was really cute!" He flailed his hands, hopelessly speaking in between a yell and a whisper as the three watched him. Yaku looked at him a second longer before he turned to the side to look at Inuoka who also met his eyes, wondering what was going on, "Alright? Is something wrong with that?"

Shibayama kept to himself diagonally behind Yaku but he spoke up timidly, gaining their attention, "I'm.. going to go sit next to [Name]."

The black-haired boy jumped when Yamamoto sprang up and grabbed his shoulders, "Yes! Go and ask him! You're so smart, Shibayama-san~! Go see if he likes our precious setter!"

Inuoka shrugged his shoulders when the boy in the aces hold gave him a look of help but also couldn't help looking in between Kenma and you to see if he actually got to catch what Yamomoto was talking but about, and there it was.

You looked away from the phone for a second to see what was going on as Lev began to whine about wanting to skip receives for todays practise but you had also caught Kenma's golden eyes. Kenma didn't mean to get caught but he had and now that he had, he didn't look away. He once again found himself entranced by the two sparkling eyes of his best friend and the smile that was ignited to his face.

You did a double take, first you hadn't realised that he was looking at you but then you noticed he was and you didn't look away. You didn't want to look away. Kenma only stood on the corner of the court, his posture slouched as he stayed in one spot lazily while waiting for something to happen. He was beginning to regret moving from your side and when you softly patted the bench beside you, his feet started moving in your direction.

This caused the smile on your face to grow, the golden eyes of the setter to glow and Yaku had seen all of this happen; the looks of adoration passed between the both of you, the way your visible emotions practically controlled Kenma to come to you, walking smoothly your way and it was you who brought his eyes to illuminate as they did, making his face - the normally lazy and unapproachable setter - lighten up in a way that made him look so much more content than he usually was when he was with his team or maybe hanging out with them after school.

Yaku almost smiled, almost. His lips twisted up and a single brow raised on his face when Yamomoto practically yelled out, "Hey! Didn't I tell ya! H-"

"Shut up! You're too damn loud!" Yaku almost kicked him, opting to punch him in the shoulder instead as the ace flinched and yelled again in pain, he held his shoulder as he stared daggers to the libero. In turn, Yaku frowned deeply in an angered way and Kuroo spoke up, having been quietly listening to their not-so-quiet discussion and he opened his mouth that was pulled into a grin, "Let's get started!"

Kenma stopped and turned back with a grim face, a sad smile appearing on yours as you watched him turned away and now both Kenma and yourself had five team mates watching you like a group of gossiping high school girls all thinking the same thing,

_'We have to set them up.'_


	3. three x twenty

He stood on the court as you stayed on the side bench with Yūki Shibayama to keep you company. The phone beside you was put down after a short while when you found yourself getting bored on the internet when all you could find amusing were the old and stale memes. It was quiet on the bench but the court; which was only a few feet away, was louder when the players were yelling of the ball or yelling at each other.

They had split themselves into two teams to play and then they were spiking it to each other and so forth, Kuroo and Kenma performing different moves to perfect for future games as well like their personal time difference attack. Shibayama had seen you placing the phone down, he didn't say anything and you weren't bothered by it at all. You only observed the players and picked up a stray ball that came rolling to you when more were gotten from the cart.

You rolled the rough texture along your fingers, skimming your hands around the ball in your lap and noticed someone glaring at the person next to you, "Ne, Shibayama-san?"

He perked up at the sound of your voice, looking at you with wide eyes and you continued, "I think Yamamoto-san wants to talk to you?"

"Eh? Oh.."

"He keeps looking over here." You had raised a brow out of curiosity and Shibayama found himself stuttering when you looked back to Yamamoto when he was running, he jumped and spiked the ball and screamed in approval, proud of himself when he landed. He threw two arms in the air and turned around, "YOSHA! [Name], did you see that?!"

Kuroo found himself looking to his best friend beside him, the way Yamamoto had gotten Kenma's attention though the smaller setter only looked mildly disinterested, "Yeah, I saw, well done Yamamoto-san."

He yelled again and you smiled at his boisterous actions, looking to Shibayama when he had been watching as well, "You should go and play, go practise your setting." He did as he was told quickly and left your side with a short nod as you watched him leave. You readjusted your seat on the bench and spread your legs to make yourself comfortable when you leaned back with your hands behind you on the seat.

Kenma had a ball thrown at him.

He didn't see it and the ball hit his face pretty hard, there was an echoed sound of a deep slap that resonated in the gym and you flinched, your eyes immediately looking for the source of the sound and you found that everyone had flinched, frozen when Kenma was cringing in pain and immense annoyance as the ball bounced away from him.

"Are you okay, Kenma?"

Kuroo was the first to ask and he huffed, looking away from everyone's eyes stubbornly and you were already on your feet. Yamamoto and Yaku were to busy scolding ~~kicking~~ Lev to notice the quick and light foot steps hitting the polished floor of the gym when you began jogging towards Kenma, a towel hanging around your shoulder that you had grabbed from Kuroo's bag on the floor.

"Kenma."

He heard you, looking at you immediately as he saw the towel as well, "Is it bleeding?"

He shook his head, a prominent frown covering his face when he refused to speak, two cheeks turning bright pink as embarrassment and irritation began to radiate from him. You had seen Lev's look of shock and then the look of regret, it was an accident and yet Yaku was forcing him to apologise to the precious setter, "Let me see."

He moved his face away from your hands as you both stood a foot apart, your hand reached for his face again, "Oi, stop being stubborn or else I won't give you your DS." You saw him hesitate, "I still have it, you know."

His shoulders visibly sagged and Kuroo grinned at the interaction before him, "Kenma can't say no to [Name]~" He spoke to himself out loud, allowing yourself and Inuoka to also hear, "Shut up, Kuroo."

You couldn't help smiling a little and then you noticed him slowly moving to you, moving his face to your outstretched hand, once he allowed you to look at his nose and his cheeks that were already turning red from the ball you spoke quietly, "I wish I didn't have to blackmail you so I can touch you, Kenma."

He heard you, speechless, he looked at your eyes as you slowly skimmed your fingers over his skin. His face was warm and his golden eyes were slowly widening when you offered him a small smile. It wasn't a normal smile that he adored though because this time it seemed a bit insecure or embarrassed. It didn't look natural and it made Kenma feel something that made him feel worse than a volleyball to the face.

"..'m sorry.."

"What was that?"

You watched his brows furrows, his nose squirm when his lips turned downwards, "I'm sorry, okay.." He looked defeated and you couldn't help smiling even more because of how cute the sight was. How tempted you were to simply lean forward and allow your lonely lips to meet his when he stood so close and so _right there_ and seemingly vulnerable.

You only wanted to turn his frown to a smile but you stepped away to give him some space when Lev was behind you, "I'm so sorry~ Kenma! My aiming isn't so good, I promise it won't happen agai-"

"Damn right it won't! You're supposed to be practising receives!"

"I said I'm sorry, Yaku-san!" He whined again, turning to Yaku and the latter cringed angrily, kicking Lev on the leg as he swung around to yell, "Stop whining! Get back to practise."

Kuroo grew a smirk and Kenma already looked displeased with it, "Oya leave [Name] and Kenma alone." You look at him as well, raising a brow obliviously, "What are you getting at, scheming captain?"

He shook his head, his eyes finding Yamamoto's as he winked, making the ace of the team gape in silence.

For the rest of the practise, Kenma couldn't focus because of a temporary fear consisting of a volleyball coming out of nowhere to hit him in the face and because he didn't know how to make [Name] feel better again because of his salty attitude and now he just wanted a kiss.

As much as you wanted to kiss him before, he was yearning for it too and just as much.


	4. four x twenty

After school, after volleyball practice concluded, the team; including yourself, all headed to the local convenient store. The sun was still bright, casting a shadow to fall before you as you saw the shadow of Kenma next to you as well. You could see on the ground in the dark shadows, how you were connected to Kenma. Your arm had been lightly holding his as he walked close to you.

He didn't say anything, he was focused on the DS in his hands and you watched him from time to time when you weren't listening to the others speak. They led while Kenma and yourself somehow got placed in the middle of the group, they all surrounded you and often gave you glances to which you'd notice Kuroo smirk at them.

You neither commented nor paid attention to it too much. You only made sure that Kenma didn't stray away from you or walk into a pole while he was so concentrated on his game.

"Kenma.."

"Hu-urgh.. Yes?"

He looked at you briefly, a sour look crossing his face, "Oh, did you die?"

You couldn't help smiling, slightly regretful when he looked away stubbornly and restarted from his last checkpoint, "Sorry Kenma.. I'll be quiet then. Keep playing."

He didn't respond and you breathed out loudly as you looked ahead at Yaku and Lev who had been leading beside Yamamoto. You'd notice how they would look back every so often and you watched how they saw where you hand was holding Kenma's arm. You didn't stop holding him though, you guided him to the store and you heard Kenma speak under his breath, "You can.. keep talking. If you want."

Smiling, Kenma flinched when you neared him instantly because of the butterflies in your stomach. You didn't care for the dumb smile on your face and he looked shocked despite there being no reason to be, he didn't know he had this affect on you and it still frightened him.

"Kenma, maybe you should try a different attack combo."

His player stopped and you watched him quietly as he stopped moving his fingers, "Huh?"

He paused the game and opened the skills menu, going down to see the different combos and memorise them before exiting out, playing them immediately to see the effect it had as the enemys' health bar decreased quickly and enormously.

"Oh."

Your lips twitched upwards but you were ignored while Lev and Yaku stopped at the store, Yamamoto having already walked in with change rattling in his hand and you left Kenma's side to go inside, "[Lastname]-san, it's been awhile, how're your studies?"

You picked up an apple pie from the heated desserts and grabbed a melon bread for yourself, looking away as you walked to the counter as the old man greeted you with a kind smile, "Jii-san, my studies are boring and I'm too distracted. What should I do?"

He didn't hesitate to look outside the window while Yamamoto was still in the aisle as he grabbed enough for the team and himself to eat. The ace began walking to the counter, dropping the food besides yours when your two items were already scanned. The man behind the counter; Katsuo, had his eyes on Kenma before smiling back at you.

"I see you're still buying apple pie for that boy, I suppose that's your distraction and in that case, don't do anything. Treasure it."

You couldn't help smiling and Yamamoto froze beside you, "Jii-san, what do you know!" The ace didn't hesitate when you received the change for your purchase and you cringed slightly from the volume of his yell, the old mans smile wavered as he frowned, "Aye aye you said it, I'm a _Jii-san_ so watch the ears! Damn kids yelling too much these days.."

You nodded in farewell to Katsuo and he waved you off when you had the warm dessert in one hand and your bread in the other. Kenma saw you coming from the two sliding doors and he watched you without blinking when you sat beside him, thigh touching thigh when he opened his small palm for the treat. You obliged immediately and bowed jokingly, "Here you go, Kozume-Sama."

Kuroo smirked as he stood beside Kenma, watching the pudding head look away as you saw his cheeks reddening, "Ah, Kuroo," The captain looked down, amused as he noticed his antisocial setter so embarrassed, "Kenma-chan is blushing."

"Shut up."

Kuroo and yourself laughed quietly when Yamamoto came out, pouring the food on the floor when everyone grabbed what they wanted, "Oh [Name]-san bought food for Kenma again." Yamamoto didn't hesitate to voice his thoughts out loud and Fukunaga also spoke, softly as he was slightly intrigued too, "Kenma-san is.. special to him."

Yaku raised a brow at their ace and you enjoyed the melon bread quietly, not bothering to speak when Kenma ate quietly as well with two pink cheeks from hearing the conversation, "Oh! I saw these magazines inside and it reminded me of Karasunos manager!"

"You mean Kiyoko-san? Inuoka spoke as he unwrapped fried chicken flavoured snacks, this earned a slap on the back by the ace as he yelled with hearts in his eyes, " _Ah!_ Kiyoko-chan, she's so beautiful! Hey, captain why don't we have a pretty manager too!"

Yaku scoffed, scrunching his food wrapper with a hard glare, "We don't have one because she'd get harassed by you all the damn time."

"Besides, you have me - am I right, Kenma-chan?"

Kenma glared at you and opened his mouth before Kuroo did, “Oya? Are you gonna tell us something, Kenma?”

”What’s wrong with [Name] and I dat-“

”Besides! Nekoma is fine without a manager and Nekomata is good enough, don’t complain when we have the rival of the famous Ukai-sensei.”

You had managed to change the direction of the topic and the team spoke on casually about girls and managers and volleyball. Only Kuroo and Kenma realised your odd behaviour and Kenma was left wondering why you had cut him off so suddenly, avoiding eye contact which made him feel a bit disappointed in a way, embarrassed for thinking he could actually say out loud what he was going to say.


	5. five x twenty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly sexual themes ahead

To Kenma's slight pleasure, you had followed him when the team departed to go to their homes. Neither one of you said anything as Kenma played on the DS next to you on the train. Kuroo also sat beside you as he'd glance at the both of you often before looking back out the window when the sky was beginning to darken slightly.

You didn't say anything and it was a little odd to Kuroo, usually, you'd be pestering Kenma and bragging about how you got to sleep with him instead of Kuroo even though Kuroo was completely fine with it when he had another on his mind.

"What's wrong with your boyfriend, Kenma?"

Kenma hadn't stopped playing and you stared at Kuroo, glanced at Kenma and then smiled though you knew it appeared forced, "M-Me? What? Who said something was wrong with me?"

"You've been quiet the whole time on the train... I've been waiting for you to say something so I'd have to pause my game and it's distracting." The pudding-head appeared more annoyed than concerned and you slowly raised your hand to scratch the back of your neck, "I-.. I honestly thought you were upset with me, actually.." Your voice trailed off to disappear and Kenma raised a single brow when the train slowly came to a stop as Kuroo stood with a small sigh, "Looks like you both have something to talk about."

You stood as well and Kenma followed, each of you walking out the train doors to pass the many people to find the exit of the station. You tagged your train pass after Kuroo and you waited as Kenma tagged his too. When he got back to your side, he was always touching you as the DS slid into his pocket for the time being. Kuroo lead the both of you out and he walked in front for a while. It was quiet and the neighbourhood was silent too, comforting.

"Are you alright then, Kuroo?"

He didn't stop nor speak and then he glanced back at you. His eyes trailing down to your hand that was entwined with his setters' as the two of you walked together completely nonchalantly, comfortable and natural, "Yeah... I'm okay. I just-.." 

Your brows furrowed and you quickly glanced at Kenma for his reaction, he appeared disinterested as usual but his eyes were curious, "I'll talk to you guys about it later, I need to figure it out myself. See you tomorrow."

"Okay... Bye Kuroo."

"Goodbye.." Kenma spoke slowly and you stared at the captains back when he smirked back at you, "Take good care of the precious setter, [Name]." You froze and Kenma was surely blushing, "K-Kuroo!"

Kenma's home was quiet when you walked up the stairs behind him. His mother invited you in and headed off to bed after setting the table with food. She smiled lovingly when you ate happily beside Kenma and despite being the boyfriend of her son, she practically treated you like family and you adored her for it.

Kenma slowly opened the door to his room and you didn't hesitate to drop your school bag and fall forward on his bed. You landed on the bottom half while Kenma grabbed the DS from his pocket and turned it on again. He turned up the volume slowly and you heard the entrance music that switched immediately to the gaming sound effects when he already began the game. 

With the DS in hand, he placed his bag with yours and walked to the bed to sit in front of his pillows. The small bed was against the wall and there was a bedside table next to it. He sat there with his knees up so he could support the game on them while he played with the screen so close. 

After a few comforting minutes, you finally moved though the scent of Kenma that was heavily laced in the bed sheets almost put you to sleep just like it had done so many times before. You slowly squirmed up the bed and lifted yourself into a position on your hands and knees. You could see over the DS as Kenma's wide, golden eyes were focused on the game and you took the opportunity to grab his ankles. 

You pulled and he almost yelped out loud, shocked with his brows furrowed as he stared at you. His shirt had ridden up his slim, stomach slightly and you grinned when you continued to pull his legs down the bed so he slowly lowered under you as you looked down at him. His cheeks were turning red and you silently lowered your head to nudge your nose against his skin.

He fidgeted, his torso seeming to shake without his control when your lips met his hot skin, you trailed your lips up and he seemed to sink even more into the bed when his arms raised subconsciously. You smiled again, your teeth skimming over his pecs when you kissed him again and he sighed to himself whilst never taking his eyes off of you. Your lips met his nipple, kissing it lightly before moving back again to remove his shirt, "Kenma.."

He followed your movement and obeyed completely, it made you excited and you threw the shirt onto the floor to kiss his body again, the scent of him slightly mixed with sweet sweat seemed to ignite something within you when your head raced and your heart thumped madly. Your cheeks were growing warm, it was getting hot and Kenma closed his eyes momentarily only to open them again when your moist lips left his pec. 

"[N-Name].." He sounded unsure but the way his voiced cracked made him sound so vulnerable and small, he sounded so sexy as you breathed him in deeply, raising your head when your pants began feeling tight and uncomfortable.

"It's alright, Kenma-chan."

He settled and breathed in to calm himself as you slowly lowered your body to rest your head on his chest. He invited you in, his slim arms resting on your back while he pushed back your short hair, watching it fling back to its place on your forehead.

The DS played in the background and you read the screen,

_'You Died!_

_➤ Play Again from Checkpoint_

_Back to Main Menu'_

Smiling, you kissed him again, feeling his bones beneath the skin and he watched you when he noticed and glanced at the screen of his game, "You made me die again.."

"Why don't you try another attack combination?" He rolled his eyes at your answer and huffed as his fingers combed through your hair when you closed your eyes, you began shifting your lower body when you tangled your legs around his, hitting your ankle against his when he scowled, "What're you doing? That hurt.."

"S-Sorry Kenma," He noticed you were more breathless than he was but he still didn't understand, "Wh-"

"Kenma," You lifted yourself on his stomach, putting enough weight to make sure you didn't hurt him and he almost sat up out of curiousness of your odd behaviour, "Let's uh, take a shower, please." Your red cheeks and fidgeting behaviour were enough for him to reluctantly agree when you bolted to the shower to turn it on and make sure it was warm enough. 

Your clothes were thrown to the ground when he entered and he noticed the glass shower door fogging up from the heat as he slid his pants down his legs after his shoes came off too, his socks were off as well and he slowly opened the door to see you.

Wet and naked.

It wasn't the first time, neither was it the second or third but Kenma could never get used to it. He'd look at you in your bare glory and soaked everything in before you noticed. You'd smile at him and took his hand, careful not to pull him and to make sure he didn't slip. He'd touch you carefully out of nervousness though you always had no qualms about how you touched him. Only to make sure he was completely comfortable with you.

"Kenma... I got a bit hard before, I'm sorry." You saw his eyes widen profusely and you could only chuckle nervously, "Sorry.." You repeated under your breath and Kenma stared into your eyes before turning bright red, "It's uh- ok-alright.." He stuttered and you let the shower rain over him as you took turns under the shower head. Watching his brown-blonde hair stick to his cheeks before he slicked it back effectively making you lick your lips at the sight.

"You're dangerously beautiful, Kenma.."

He rubbed his eyes as the water fell over him and looked at you in alert, "Don't worry, I won't do anything you don't want - you know that, don't you."

He looked to the side, "... Of course."

His hand lifted to grab the soap from the side when he noticed it was gone, he looked at you to find you smiling, "I'll clean you nicely, Kenma. Kuroo told me to take care of you but I don't need him to tell me what I know." The smirk on your face only assisted in making Kenma a mix of nervous and aroused.

"I've been thinking of this for a while, [Name]."

"What is it?"

Kenma sat cross-legged on the floor with the DS in his hands while you sat behind him on the floor, your back resting on the side of the bed. You used your fingers as a brush after having used a small towel to dry his hair, to keep his tresses from dripping with excess water.

He spoke lowly and broke the silence of the room when he put the DS on mute so you both had each other's full attention. Not that a DS would get in the way of that anyway.

"Why did you cut me off.. when I was talking when we were at the store before.." He sounded unsure of himself, almost like he was being cautious around you, like he was afraid that you'd get upset for asking, "I was just going to say that we're.. dating... am I not allowed to?"

You sighed and leaned forward to smell the honey and coconut scented shampoo, placing your lips on the back of his head before going back to your initial position, "It isn't that, Kenma. You mean everything to me so I'll always be with you no matter what. I love you heaps, you know?"

He was quiet.

"I respect you and I only care about your wellbeing, if you're okay then I'm the happiest man in the world." You smiled as you spoke, you couldn't control it. You didn't hesitate nor lie at all and you felt somewhat proud of yourself, ".. love you too."

"I'm glad- Look, give me your hand." He turned slightly and did as he was told, wondering why yet he still placed his smaller hand in your own. You brought it to your bare chest and he felt your heartbeat, "It's fast, right? This is what you do to me." His eyes went wide again and you chuckled, "You're so adorable."

"Guys don't really like being called adorable.." You rolled your eyes as he stayed in his spot, his side facing you with the game in his hand to distract him from the blush that threatened to consume his entire face, "You're different."

You sighed and let go of Kenmas' hand, feeling the way his fingers slowly trailed down your abdomen when he was paying attention to you, not his hand.

"I didn't want to embarrass you, Kenma."

His lips turned somewhat grim, "If you said that we're dating, I bet the team would've never let you live it down. You know how Yamamoto-san is.. and If they knew then you'd never get any peace like you do now - sort of. I know what you're thinking and I didn't do it because I'm embarrassed to be dating you and it isn't because you're a boy either."

He was at a loss for words before a frown formed, "Idiot.."

You couldn't help but laugh to yourself, your eyes crinkled and Kenma watched you with two narrowed eyes, "I'm sorry Kenma, were you worried? Did I worry you because of that? Did it make you like this for the whole afternoon, even after what we did in the shower?"

He looked away in a second and you smiled, leaning into him when you grabbed the hand that had been resting on your pants, right over _that_ area. You smirked at him when he didn't notice the gleam in your eyes, kissing his clothed shoulder as he gasped when you tightened your hold on his hand, making it touch you intimately, "You wanna go again, Kenma? Is that what you're telling me?"

His golden eyes glanced from your face and then to his hand, looking back and forth as his cheeks grew hot once again, "Okay.."

The slight shock almost derailed you from your goal, "You really want to?" He nodded hesitantly and you smiled, leaping onto him, _"Kenma~!"_


	6. six x twenty

The next morning you were up before Kenma, that was nothing new. You had grabbed the clothes from the floor and changed out of your pyjamas that you had left in a draw of your clothes and then grabbed his own clothes to throw them on the end of the bed. You didn't hesitate to rip open the curtains as Kenma shuffled in the bed, covering his face with a low grown.

"Rise and shine, baby~ It's time to get up!" You couldn't help laugh to yourself when he glared and you grabbed your bag to leave around the corner before he noticed you poke your head in the room again, "No but seriously, we both slept in and there's a high chance we'll miss the train."

Arriving at Nekoma, the bell had just gone and Kenma hurried in front of you so he wasn't late. He only wanted to hurry so his classmates wouldn't watch him as he walked in, having to tell the teacher why he was late. You didn't mind as much and walked with a smile as you watched him. 

A couple of minutes after everyone was in class, the door finally slid open and you walked in as you glanced at Kenma when he was already sitting with his book out, you smirked and looked at the teacher quickly, "Sorry I'm late, Sensei."

She gave you a condescending shake of the head before letting you do to your seat and you did so, following the lesson as you also began wondering why Kuroo hadn't been at the station when you were. Why hadn't you seen him all morning?

Class passed by as usual and during the breaks, you didn't hesitate to go to Kenma's desk as he shuffled his books away to get things for his next class, "Hey, you alright there?"

He looked at you, distorted and then he looked down to see the light scribbles he'd done over his books. Clicking his tongue, he shut them annoyed and refused to look at you again when you grabbed a chair near you to put it in front of his desk, "Kenma, you're tired?"

"Mhm." He didn't answer, merely humming to himself though by the way he found trouble in keeping his eyes open, you couldn't help smiling at him adoringly, "So cute.."

He glanced at you now, golden eyes narrowing before you quickly filled in the silence to change the conversation when Kenma yawned, _again;_ you knew because you'd seen it happen during class - not that you were watching him _that_ much, 

"hey, did you see Kuroo this morning?" Your boyfriend shook his head, sighing in irritation at nothing really, just at the fact that he was really tired, and you carried on, "I thought he'd be on the train or something, maybe he took an earlier one?"

"Yeah, maybe that's because someone didn't wake up earlier." He spat and you smiled, grinning shamelessly after recalling the events of last night, how fresh the memories were. "You wouldn't have woken up at all if I didn't get up, maybe we should do what we did last night on the weekends instead of school nights, right?" He caught you winking at him and flushed bright red, turning away when he answered incoherently as it was muffled behind the palm of his hand.

The bell rang, it was the last class before lunch break so you returned to your desk until someone came to your class, Taketora ripped the door open and chuckled nervously at the teachers glare whereas both Kenma and yourself watched him oddly, "Ahh.. Sorry Sensei, we need to [M/Name] to come to the nurse's office." He rubbed the back of his mohawk and you stood up, unsurely and left with the teachers approval.

"The nurse? Why would she need to see me?"

"The nurse? _O-Oh!_ No, that was a lie."

You raised a brow at the ace and stopped in the hall when you were initially heading to the place you thought you had to be, "Then why am I here, Taketora?"

He bit his lip, without looking at you and laughed as if trying to ease the tension when you didn't look away from him, watching him like a stern teacher, "H-hey, Kenma will lend you his notes, right? It's fine!"

"It's usually the other way around, he isn't going to be happy with this." This intrigued the other second year when he smirked and replied coyly, "sounds like you've both got a nice thing goin' on, aye?"

He smirked and you raised a single brow, really confused as to what was happening and why you were skipping class for this, "Did you take me out of class for this? You know we have a science test tomorrow, right?"

His eyes blew wide, "That's _tomorrow?!_ "

He stopped and both of his arms raised so that he could place his palms together, as if he was praying, "Yeah... was there anything else you needed?"

This time he looked more apprehensive but he appeared eager too. He looked at both sides of the hall and as you mentally questioned what was going on, you did the same in bewilderment, then he finally looked at you, eyes wide and bright when he opened his mouth, without being able to hide his sneaky grin, "All this talk about Kenma makes me think you like him, eh?"

You opened your mouth, he saw the way your eyebrows furrowed and almost stopped but he actually kept going, his mouth moving before he could even think about it, "I mean, you're always buying him food _and_ only him, and-and you always walk to and from school together and I mean you guys are like, practically attached by the hip!"

You found yourself backtracking, bad memories that had been repressed were resurfacing and you looked away to avoid glaring at your friend who was only questioning the things he saw. It was harmless, you knew it and Taketora didn't think anything off it until you almost tripped backwards on your own feet, "H-hey you alright?"

He sounded honestly confused and he was completely unaware of the mental anguish that you had forced yourself to forget but it didn't stop him for being a genuine friend, nothing would, really,

"I-I uhh, I gotta go. I'm sorry."

You turned away, feeling humiliated and stupid for letting his harmless queries get to you because you knew it was completely different to middle school but it didn't mean the scars you had gained from there weren't hurting. They hurt, but not as much as the times you'd gained them in your old school.

Lunchtime came around and Kenma hadn't seen you since you left class with Taketora. He had left his things behind along with yours to leave the class with a mission on his mind, his first location was the infirmary where he opened the door without a care to see the nurse snap her head up at he noise, she smiled and asked him, "Kenma, are you not feeling well?"

He turned pink, "N-no, I'm fine." He closed the door and left quickly, his head down low until he noticed Taketora and Fukunaga talking to eachother on their way to the cafeteria. Kenma noticed how Taketora had been looking around with a worried look upon his face, to this, Kenma narrowed his eyes but paused at the sound of someones voice, 

"Kenma, what's up?"

Kuroo was there, Kenma waited until he caught up but it had also caught the attention of the two other second years when they turned around. At the sight of Kenma, the boy with the mohawk brightened and sped up to his setter, asking him loudly about your whereabouts before he'd even reached the smaller boy,

"[M/Name]? I was looking for you to ask where he was."

"Wait, what's wrong with [M/Name]?" Kuroo asked with a raised brow, it didn't help that Kenma had become increasingly worried about you as well which made the captain question curiously,

Kenma looked at his teammate to answer and he almost looked guilty, "Look, I asked him to come out of class to ask him stuff and I-I think I made him upset, I-" he noticed the glare Kenma gave him with is dark, yellow eyes, "I'm _sorry, Kenma!"_

"What'd you ask him?" Fukunaga questioned him, looking up at the ace in wonder as no one else spoke, all wondering the same thing, Taketora shuffled nervously and then huffed, "I asked him how he felt about you.." He gestured to the boy standing before him, glaring with a frown, to his words, Kenma's frown deepened and he clicked his tongue while Kuroo couldn't help chuckling dryly, "It's not that bad, Ken-"

"You don't know, Kuro."

The raven-haired boy looked down at his best friend, his smile faltering a little, "Don't know what?"

"What happened to [M/Name] in middle school!" Kuroo flinched, realising he made a mistake and he sighed, "Dammit, Taketora." The latter frowned more, he didn't know what to say other than to apologise but that wouldn't do much because he knew Kenma just wanted to make sure you were alright, 

"Wh-what do _you_ feel for him, Kenma?" Fukunaga couldn't help it, he knew it wasn't the right time but he wouldn't lie and say he _wasn't_ curious about this as well. It made Kenma sigh, he looked down as if to help him think more clearly and then turned away but he stopped and turned back to Fukunaga, without looking at the ace who had driven you away.

"..-none of your business."

Kenma arrived at the only spot he figured you'd be. Whenever you weren't bored enough to leave the class and the school building all together, you'd be outside by the soccer field outside of the fence of the pitch. Kenma found you staring at the players and ripping apart flowers from the ground. Once you noticed him, you couldn't help smiling.

Kenma was practically your antidote.

He saw how you moved your legs from the way they were crossed together and you spread them apart, patting the grass in front of you so he could sit with you. He did so, quietly and you were a little surprised that he actually sat where you wanted him to, 

"I thought you'd sit beside me like you normally do with that stubborn blush." You snickered and he frowned, "Why're you pretending you're okay?"

You stopped and your hand faltered on the grass beside you but you still leaned forward to rest your forehead on the back of Kenma's neck, "You know?"

"Taketora's an idiot, you don't nee-"

"It wasn't his fault, Kenma. He didn't know." Cutting in, you gently laid a kiss on his warm skin above his white collar and he shuddered, "I know... I'm just annoyed. Boys are trash."

" _Some_ boys are, Kuroo isn't right? And the team as well. What about Hinata, too? Karasuno are cool, I like 'em." He didn't reply and you sighed, "I promise it's fine, Taketora just brought up some memories I didn't want, It's my faul-"

Kenma cut you off quickly, "Don't say it's your fault, idiot." He didn't look at you and you smiled at the back of his head, leaning back with your arms resting behind you on the grass. You couldn't help feeling pride swell in your chest because of your second year boyfriend, "You're right, no one is at fault. He was just asking me what I thought of you an-"

"What?" 

"We really have to stop cutting each other off, Kenma-chan." He looked to the side and you took note of the deep blush covering his cheeks, up to his ears when you grinned boyishly at the adorable sight, "What's up~?"

He mumbled but as his face was turned to the side, you heard him and revelled in the sound of his small, cute voice that barely made it to your ears, 

"Fukunaga asked me how I felt about you... and Taketora kept apologising." 

"Oh..."

A small grin made it's way to your face and you thought you had figured out what was happening but you needed more clues. You guessed Kuroo probably knew what was going on too but Kenma wouldn't know unless you told him directly. It was funny, though. Maybe you'd keep it to yourself for a little while longer.


	7. seven x twenty

"Aaah.. so many boys, energetic boys.." Hands rested behind your head, your posture was straight, chest out and you continued while glancing at Kenma from your peripheral vision, a smirk playing at your lips, "cute boys," Kenma perked up, he didn't look at you though and you spoke softly again, nonchalantly, "the most amazing, cutest, most gorgeous bo-"

"stop.." he murmured softly, you grinned as his cheeks flared red, the tip of his ears grew the same colour when he turned away and the two of you finally entered the gym after you managed to fix Kenma's dishevelled hair from activities the two of you had taken part in, in the empty classroom.  
  
  
 _"Kenma, stop being such a downer, it's making me depressed."_

_The class was empty of students, the teacher had left as well and you neared him just as you finished cleaning the chalkboard, carelessly throwing the duster back on the podium in the front of the class, you approached the smaller boy as he had switched on his DS,_

_"I'm fine.."_

_"Yeah and I'm_ not _gay." Rolling your eyes, Kenma narrowed his sight on you. Seeing as you managed to take his sights to you instead of the game, you grinned suddenly and you eyes scrunched closed from the action, "Karasuno are coming soon, shall we go?"_

_He let out a sigh, perhaps relieved or just tired because of the fact that he'd have to play for hours because of a certain player whose energy had no end. He stood, the DS still in hand before something else caught his vision and he looked beside the DS to see your outstretched hand, he looked up at you and you smiled, kind and gentle, it often took Kenma's breath away._

_So, without any hesitance (almost_ at all _) Kenma took your hand and watched as you interlaced your fingers with his, he sucked in a breath and started walking to rid himself of the sudden nerves in his system because a) the two of you were alone and b) his boyfriend wasn't the most innocent person around.._

_But he was a second too late and he faltered when you hadn't moved, he stepped back to regain his balance and in that moment he hadn't even registered that you had moved closer, pulling him into you as you caught the side of his head in your other hand, holding his jaw with such tender care that he almost melted but he didn't even have any time to think when you lips were placed on his._

_The softness, the warmth, it simply rendered him immovable and he was frozen, his lips hadn't even been moving on yours but you were okay with it as it had happened so many times before, you could only come to the conclusion that these were one of Kenma's favourite kisses._

_Your lips moved along with his, softly and sensually, you parted for a moment and relished in the feeling of Kenma's fingers tightening in your own when his lips gravitated back to yours, sloppily and so warm, you moved your top lip to capture his and his breath trembled into your mouth, the hand that had been holding his jaw slowly moved around, fingers grazing against his cheekbone and it soon made it's way to his ear, playing with his hair after._

_Slowly breathing through your nose, your forehead met his and he parted when you lightly pulled on his tresses, "is this okay..?" breathlessly, Kenma nodded, his head bobbing against yours and you smiled, leaning in again to place a chaste kiss on his wonderfully, addictive thin lips._

_You did it again, Kenma blinked and he didn't have time to reciprocate it when you kissed his lips again,_

_"o-oi.."_

_"mhmm.." as he backed away to put some space between the two of you, you merely took him in again to nuzzle your nose against the skin on his neck, "love you.."_

_he tensed, "..so much."_

Once inside, Kenma and yourself finally made it the large group of boys as they were reunited for another practise match, "Kenma~!" Hinata raced over from Kageyama and Nishinoya's side to meet with his friend, the one he had promised to make him hyped up for the match, "are you ready for the match!"

His eyes, bright and wide, dashed to you, "Oh! [M/Name], hey, you're gonna watch too!?" He yelled and you laughed in response, finding his grin absolutely adorable and infectious, "[M/Name]!" you were about to reply before someone else yelled your name, you tensed and so did Kenma.

"Uh, yeah, one second, Hinata," your eyes found Taketora, a guilty look on his face as Kuroo stood beside him with a serious expression, "what's up?" Taketora was apprehensive, he rubbed his hand over his mohawk and grumbled incomprehensible words while you bit your lip, glancing from the captain and to the ace, "I'm so-"

"sorry for what happened, Taketora?"

He froze, Kuroo narrowed his eyes, "oi, didn't this idiot upset _you?"_

Laughing it off awkwardly, you found the severity of the situation to be a little exaggerated and Taketora flailed, unable to keep his composure even when his good friend from Miyagi had finally come to play against him, bringing their beautiful manager with him, 

"Yeah, just let me do this man," the rowdy boy finally spoke normally, at ease but there was still concern in his eyes, "I overstepped and asked something I shouldn't have.. Sorry.. It uh, it won't happen again," Kuroo snickered from beside him, shamelessly and it ignited a grin to your face,

"Oi! There's no problem, I just wasn't expecting it, I mean, me and _Kenma?_ No way!!" Taketora visibly relaxed, laughing with you, "he's _way_ out of my league!" You had exclaimed with a cheeky grin and stared at the other boy for a while and you knew Kenma heard, you turned, not before winking at the male and you escaped before he could make you stop to ask what the _hell just happened_ and Kuroo laughed at your cheeky ways.

"I thought you didn't want to tell them.." Kenma murmured to you as soon as you were within earshot, "hm?" you glanced at him, throwing a careless arm around his shoulders for comfort and Hinata stared because of how Kenma had stopped mid-sentence to look at you, watching you and listening to only you,

"oh, I know!" Hinata tilted his head in confusion, "but it's fun to mess with them, I think Yamamoto is back to square one." Snickering, you tightened your hold on your boyfriend and he moved with you, grumbling tired incomprehensible murmurs when the orange-haired boy finally grew enough courage to say something,

"Uh-I me- [M/Name]!" Both of you stared, you almost forgot he was there when you embraced your lover as much as you could in a gym filled with boys,

"good to see you, Shouyou, how's it going?"

He scrambled to say the right thing, spitting the first thing that came from his mouth and you paused, "w-what did you mean by.. by what you just said!?"

You looked at Kenma just as he glanced at you, an unreadable expression on his face when you grinned back towards the eager-looking boy, "Kenma-chan is the apple of my eye~" You brightened up, startling the smaller boy in your grasp, "Ooh! The apple _pie_ of my eye," nodding smugly, you continued, excitedly gushing about the boy you loved, "get it? Cause he's so sweet and cute and he smells so good and-"

"what this idiot is saying..." Kenma cut you off, his voice steady as he refused to make eye contact with you when you had been suggestively wiggling your eyebrows the entire time,

"...is that I'm his boyfriend." 

Hinata froze, his face held the same curious and you waited seconds before he finally broke a sweat, his mouth slowly forming a giant O and you only smiled more as well, watching as the shock, disbelief and excitement ran through his face as his eyes sparkled at the new revelation,

_"EEEHHHHH?!!?!?"_


	8. eight x twenty

Watching eagerly from the sidelines with the people who weren't playing in the practise match, you couldn't take your eyes away from the match. Or the third match, actually because these guys seriously had too much stamina. You could see the toll it was taking on Kenma and you mentally cheered him on from the sidelines, making sure you had a bottle and a towel for him when he finally got to take a breather and come back to you. 

The scores were incredibly close and you loved watching the two, Kageyama and Hinata, when they did their super fast set and spike that; despite the fact that Yaku was starting to comfortably be able to touch, was still awesome to watch. It was so cool, as well, that even though it was a practise match, all of the players were treating it seriously, calling out to get a spike and running after the ball to at least get a one-touch, it was admirable, you thought.

Your eyes, however, never strayed from the boy you adored for long. Even when there was just a short rally and Kenma glanced at someone to pass a quick set, he looked focused and so serious and it made you smile, the side of your mouth quirking up a little when you then looked at Hinata who was in front of him on the other side of the net.

_"EEEHHHHH?!!?!?"_

_Unable to keep your laugh in, you had chuckled whilst leaning your head on Kenma's shoulder as you moved your weight into him so he had to leaned more towards you to keep himself on his two feet. Kenma nodded, reaffirming what he had said so that Hinata didn't feel like he had to ask again, as if Kenma was joking with him._

_But it seemed like he understood because Kenma, joking? No, you were more likely going to do that out of the two of you._

_"That's right!"_

_And you wanted to tease the orange-haired boy for blushing, possibly because of the way you and Kenma were so close to each other, the contact being so easy and natural._

_"Woah, I had no idea!"_

_"Well, it's not a big deal."_

_But you had seen something else, and maybe it was nothing, but when Hinata glanced around to look for something or someone, and when he found what he was looking for, you followed his line of sight to see the black-haired setter in his team. Your grin simmered to a smile, lifting your head to look at the boy straight on because of course, there was a chance you could be wrong but something about the earnestness in his bright eyes spoke to you, reminded you of yourself,_

_"Shouyou.." Gaining his attention quickly from the use of his first name, Kenma turned to you as well, mildly curious about the sincere look on your face, "fight on." Encouraging him silently, you had said two words but between the three of you, it meant a lot more._

"[Name]."

"Huh?" Snapping your gaze up, an instant smile ignited on your face, "Kenma!" 

You raised the bottle to his waiting hand and he took it to take a drink, looking at the ceiling as he finally got to hydrate himself when you finally looked around to realise that practise was over. You didn't even know how much time had passed but you were glad, standing up and raising the towel you were holding so you could pat it along Kenma's forehead and down the side of his face, along his jaw bone and then to his chin. His eyes, fast and holding something heavy with emotion, snapped to you when he felt the contact become slow, like you were savouring it for yourself and when your pupils became wider with affection, he had to quickly swallow the water in his mouth and lower the bottle lest he accidentally choke on it.

"You were amazing, just like alw-"

"Kenma! Set for me, Kageyama is being stupid!"

"Huh!?" You looked around your boyfriend to see the two bickering, smirking as Kageyama almost swung at Hinata when the smaller boy, even after having been playing for so long, was still able to move fast enough to dodge, "Stop being stupid, boke-Hinata, we all need rest!"

"Ehh..." Hinata pouted and then raised his hands to his head to flattened his hair and furrow his brow, "that doesn't sound like you, mr. all-i-need-is-volleyball," Kageyama's brows furrowed deeply as he watched Hinata imitate him and he glared harshly, Kenma sighed and stayed beside you but as you stepped forward to get closer to him, he pushed the bottle against your chest softly and muttered, "I'm... gonna play a bit more, you can head home, if you want."

"Oh," mildly surprised as you knew Kenma would usually give up and want to head home as soon as practise was over, you had taken the bottle and towel in hand, holding them for a few more seconds in mild shock before turning around and placing them on the bench. A majority of the teams were getting drinks and getting ready to head home, collecting balls and preparing to mop the floors. As you realised you were no longer.. technically needed, you grabbed your bag and headed towards the exit with a final glance to see Kenma beside Hinata, Kuroo and Tsukishima. 

**Me [20:37]**

**_did you get home okay_ **

**[Name] [22:20]**

**_yep_ **

Kenma stared at his screen for a while, his stomach twisting with uneasiness.

Kenma didn't know what it was or what had happened... but he knew something was wrong. He walked to school the next morning, his phone held unnecessarily tight in his hand while his DS was sitting in the bottom of his school bag. He had looked around as if on instinct at the train station, he had looked amongst the students wearing the same uniform on the street, who were heading the same way as him and he took a moment to think while standing at the shoe lockers because this sudden distance between the two of you felt wrong and he... didn't expect to miss you as much as he did right now, feeling a lot lonelier than he had anticipated.

He felt sad. But he didn't like that he felt sad because you were suddenly not texting or calling him because he had no idea why you were even doing it. He didn't even know if it was intentional or a mistake, as well, so he was biting his lip in worry, annoyed that you had made his mind scramble up like this. 

It irritated him because it was always like you were the one who needed him, always so touchy and affectionate, not afraid in the slightest to show him how much you adored him but really, it was the other way around. After being such good friends with you, and then having started dating a few years ago, Kenma couldn't see himself without you now. He never even thought about what it was like because you were always so fond of him, of everything about him, it seemed, but now he didn't know what to feel. 

Shaking his head slightly, his hair fell to the sides of his face as if he could shake these annoying thoughts from his mind as he took off his own shoes to swap them to the school ones. He continued his walk, towards his class and made it to the stairway to head up until a familiar back was spotted. He froze, watching you because he knew it was you. Because his eyes gravitated to you, instantly, seeking out your warmth and that smile you gave him that was undeniably attractive.

Half of him wanted to approach you, to see your smile grow at the sight of him and your eyes glow like he put the sun in the sky but the other half waited, for what? He didn't know. But he couldn't keep moving forward knowing you were right there... talking to a girl.

He moved his head slightly, so he could see her face from around your shoulders and he sucked in a breath at the sight of her bright, pink cheeks. Her wide and frazzled eyes and the way her lips glistened from either licking them too much or from some lipgloss that she had applied to look more cute.

"I-I.. I've been wanting to tell you for ages, [Name]-kun... I-" 

Kenma, knowing what was coming, still strained his ears and held his breath just to hear her say the words,

"I've never felt like this before, so I-I.." she fiddled with her fingers in front of her and Kenma didn't know how to feel when you weren't even responding, looking down at her with an expression that Kenma couldn't see.

"I like you, [Name]-kun! Please, go out with me!"


	9. nine x twenty

"I knew I'd find you here.."

Kenma took a seat beside you on the ground as you sat by the side of the soccer pitch, there were a group a people on the pitch playing with a ball and tackling each other but your mind was only half focused on them. It was lunch time and you had left the class in order to be alone. You didn't know why but you just felt anxious for some reason. You didn't want to worry Kenma but you guess that you had already done so without even realising. You wanted to punch yourself in the head for making him show you that somber face.

So you turned and gave him a small smile, reaching a hand over slowly as if unsure of what he would do but sighed in relief when he put his smaller, bony hand in your own. Grabbing onto you much tighter than you thought he would.

"You always know where to find me, babe."

He didn't look away from you, those gorgeous, golden eyes looked over your face for a few seconds before looking down to the grass in front of him, "what happened with that girl?"

Your smile fell to a line along your lips and then you clicked your tongue, "why're you bringing that up?" But in your mind you were wondering how he even knew about that. Had he been watching? Or had he heard from someone else?

"Are you worried?"

You heard a huff come from his lips and you couldn't help smirking, as if already knowing what he was thinking, "of course not," you answered your own question, knowing that you spoke for the both of you, "you're my end all-be all, baby~" His cheeks turned a soft pink and he forced his head to look down so his hair would cover the side of his face. He didn't know how you could say something so embarrassing but you were also right, "I know.."

"You know?" 

You couldn't help it, it was like everything you had been previously thinking so hard about just seemed like nothing now. You grinned and leaned into the boy, making him tilt a bit before sitting back up straight beside you, "I love you, Kenma."

"I love you too."

Your hand tightened around his, raising it quickly to plant your lips on the back of his hand before he could pull away from the sudden movement, "do you remember when I confessed to you?"

"You mean when I confessed to you." His words were almost muffled, pouting, you watched him raise his knees to the front of his chest so he could rest his chin there, still holding your hand between the two of you.

"Yeah, well," your voice held a snobby edge to it, "I was going to, but you beat me to it."

He looked towards you, unable to look away for long, and you caught the smile along his lips, "are you mad about that?"

"How could I be mad about that!" You wailed and looked up to the sky like you were in despair, wanting to be annoyed but ultimately recalling the memory to be one of the best you've had. Apart from all the times the two of you laid in bed together, clothed or not, "I'm not mad, it just annoyed me. You were so sneaky!"

"I wanted to do it way before you did. I just didn't know it yet."

He caught the smugness in your eyes, "Kuroo helped out, didn't he?" 

"I already knew you and Kuroo were different, but I didn't really get how until Kuroo mentioned it... it pissed me off."

You laughed, freely and loud. Kenma rubbed his thumb along your hand, he had missed the sound. 

"I bet it did, he loves messing with you." 

A silence hung between the two of you, it was comfortable and peaceful. But there was still something on Kenma's mind and he didn't want to avoid it, he couldn't brush it under the rub when he knew you had been troubled to the point of texting him late and with a single word, to the point that you didn't even speak to him until lunch the next day.

"What was with that text, from last night?"

Exhaling deeply, your chest had rose and sunk but you were kind of grateful that your boyfriend brought it up. You didn't know when you should've and you didn't know why it made you nervous when it concerned the boy who knew you more than anyone.

"It's stupid... I'm stupid."

Eyes flicking over to him, you watched with wide eyes, unable to breathe a few seconds when you felt tiny lips on your hand, your hand that was darker and larger than his. He placed his lips upon your skin, so soft and light that it felt like a dream. He watched, slightly surprised and feeling accomplished when your cheeks burned red, "Ke-Kenma-"

"I like stupid."

" _Kenma!"_ You raised your legs to placed your things resting in front of your chest, moving a little as if you had to go to the bathroom, "God, I.. I-I wanna fuck you really bad right now, I can't believe this, how are you _so_ cute and handsome. I'm so lucky."

"Wha-! [N-[Name]." 

You watched his face start to mirror yours, bright blush and wide, shocked eyes that you couldn't help grinning at from the embarrassment that made you chuckle, feeling so warm and fuzzy inside, almost uncomfortable by the firmness between your legs, feeling that heat deep in your gut.

" _Sorry~"_ You whined in despair and tensed your thighs together, "Urgh, you gotta warn me before you do something like that."

His voice was monotone, "I did the same thing you did." But his face was clearly shaken. You took a second and then barely recovered, focusing back on the main topic at hand. 

"I just felt, I don't know... shocked? When you said you wanted to play more with the other guys and I- I mean it's not a bad thing!" You hurriedly ensured he didn't get the wrong idea, eager to let him know that you'd never stop him from doing anything he wanted, or talking to anyone he was friends with.

"I just.. you told me I could head home if I wanted and I just... got salty about it, I don't know what my deal was.. so I wasn't upset with you," he didn't take his gaze from you, "I was annoyed with myself.. by how I reacted." 

"You were... jealous?"

Taking your gaze from him, you thought about what you had been feeling while on the way home, alone and then in your bed when you couldn't stop rolling in your bed. The restlessness and the way you seemed to have no patience for anything, like a little brat. 

"Huh.. I guess I was."

You hadn't really felt that before... if you were being honest.

"Hinata... He makes me feel, I don't know.. excited to play sometimes.. he's good at volleyball and he's fast and he always surprises me.. he always challenges me, so I wanted to play a bit more.."

Your shoulders sank with the weight disappearing, beaming at him when you let go of his hand softly so you could shuffle closer to his side and wrap your arm around his shoulders, "Hearing you say that makes me happy, Kenma."

"You're okay now, then?"

"Huh?" He didn't see the grin, but he could just hear it in your voice, "I'm always okay with you, my perfect, little baby. My cute sunshine, my adorable, tiny gameboy, my-"

"Stop."

"-and when I got home, my mum was worried that I was there so early, I bet she's gonna ask me all about what happened between us when I get home toda-"

School had ended and the clubs were beginning, you were walking with Kenma albeit a bit late because you needed to fill up on your Kenma-meter properly as you had been deprived of him from yesterday to this morning. Even now, walking into the gym, you had your arm around his shoulders and you kept him close to your body, Kenma's DS in his hand but it was turned off.

"[Name]!" The yell made you stop, looking to the sound to see Yamamoto stomping his way over to you, "Do you know how worried Kenma was this morning?!"

"Huh? You're not even in his class, what would you know?" Raising a single brow, your smirk seemed to aggravate the ace as he fired back, "I was with him before class! Our setter could barely sit still, always lookin' around for you! How dare you worry him like that!"

"Ehh~?" Yamamoto watched, eyes slowly widening when you turned to the setter and took your arm from his shoulders to lightly cup his face, pinching his cheeks for a second before holding him like a delicate flower, "is that true? Was _the_ Kozume-sama worried about lil' ole me?!" You pulled a face of mock despair, your eyes wide in mirth and Kenma, internally felt his blood bubbling with annoyance, stared you straight in the eyes, glaring fiercely.

"Let go, idiot."

"[Name]-kun.. are you okay?"

"Hm?" This time, Fukunaga had approached the three of you, his eyes downturned with worry, "Of course, Kenma and I are fi-"

"No.. uh.. I mean, you haven't heard?" 

Kuroo walked in, Yaku beside him and the two paused upon the serious atmosphere, watching your eyes dim with curiousness and slight worry as a result of the somber concern on your classmates' face.

"There's some uh.. rumours going around about you..."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _I was gonna put a lil flashback of how their confession went but I had to cut it because I got too confused with all the lil plot points I have lol sorry~_
> 
> _you'll see it later ;) hope you enjoy!_


	10. ten x twenty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _warning; homophobia, homophobic slurs_

_"There's some uh... rumours going around about you..."_

It was disappointing... to say the least. The way someone would go that far when they didn't get what they wanted. The way someone would try and go out of their way to spread such malicious information with every intention of hurting someone else. Fukunaga told you what he had heard among the second years that had coincidentally gone over and around your ears. Even Kenma was confused and wondering why he had never noticed anything like that happening until he began to reluctantly connect the dots as his sharp, golden eyes were on you and only you.

_"There are..._ _some students saying things like you're gay and... it kinda escalated from there.."_

Watching your reaction, the curiosity and nonchalance until Fukunaga told you amongst his teammates, watching how your idle interest turned to a frown and the way your pretty eyes turned nervous and hurt. Kenma reached out to you when your shoulders dropped as if in defeat. It didn't even look like you were breathing, bare in the face and showing no sign of even feeling your boyfriend right next to you.

Fukunaga hesitated to go on, unsure of how much he should say for the sake of not wanting to hurt you more than you had already possibly been hurt.

_"They were even saying things like you're a woman-hater and... and that you and K-Kenma are..."_

It was hard to think when the words rang through your mind. It was hard to see when rage was building within your chest. It was humiliating when your friends were watching you with those sad looks as if they felt sorry for you. Kenma's hand grasped onto the hem of your sweater but you turned and tried to storm off to try and think more clearly. 

They were saying you were gay? What the hell was up with that. This is modern Japan, why the hell did other people have to have a say about that. Why did people feel like they should bring you down and ostracise you just because you weren't attracted to women? What the hell was wrong with you liking cute boys with partially dyed blonde hair and striking gold, cat-like eyes? What, so boobs and big, round asses didn't appeal to you, and? Who's fucking business was that. Why were you weird for something as trivial as that? Why couldn't the people you go to school with just ignore things that didn't even concern them? Why did liking boys make you a freak?

_"he always looks at boys so weirdly!"_

_"be careful or he'll think gross things about you!"_

_"What a freak!"_

You had barely registered that you hadn't even managed to walk a few steps when you felt your collar lightly pressing against your neck. Turning your sights behind you, Kenma was the target of your cold glare and he frowned further when you didn't stop glaring at him, as if suddenly it was only you, by yourself, against everyone else in the world. He didn't let go of your sweater in fear that you would try to run away from him.

"Hey. Don't run from me." 

His face was sad, you turned away from it.

"[Name], we're all here for you," Kuroo spoke loud from the doors of the gym, "no one is going to look at you differently because of something like your sexuality." His words held something strong and intense that you couldn't look at. Glaring at the ground, you merely answered with a huff as he added, "even if the rumours are true or not."

"Whatever." 

Your voice was harsh and your reactions towards Kenma were cold and distrusting, almost like a stray, abandoned cat that distrusted humans. But Kenma knew that it wasn't towards him because he knew what was going through your mind and he knew that you would do anything to _not_ have this happen again. So, he had to make sure you knew that he was right there with you. Always with you.

"[Name], hey, we'll get through this, don't run. Not from me."

_"I've never met someone like that before!"_

With something akin to a growl and a grunt, you whipped your arm around from the boy so that he no longer had a hold on you.

_"This isn't fair!"_ Roaring, your voice cracked from the sudden force of your yell, loud and pained enough to make Kenma flinch back slightly.

He masked his shock and stay still before you, maybe because he knew that if he tried to approach you again, you'd push him away, "Oi, come on," Kenma spoke gently and quietly, kind of how he whispered to you moments before you'd fall asleep when the two of you had sleepovers. When he'd admit that you meant everything to him. When he'd quietly murmur to you to roll over so he could cuddle your back and run his skinny fingers over your firm chest and stomach. When his voice became tender and hushed, telling you to go to sleep when you would try to make him stop playing his Nintendo so late at night,

"I know it hurts, I know it's hard but you're the strongest and happiest boy I know," 

He continued, "Let's figure this out together, okay? It's just rumou-"

_"..and that you and K-Kenma are..."_

_you and K-Kenma_

_Kenma_

"Together?!" You snapped, spitting it out like a question as if you were genuinely asking but Kenma remained silent, trying to decipher what was going through your mind and yet also knowing what you were thinking as well. 

"This, this i-isn't _together!_ Kenma!" It sounded like the words were cutting at the walls of your throat.

He wanted to ask what you meant.

"They were talking about _you!_ I-I... this is all my fault!" 

And Kenma... something in his chest cracked from the way your frazzled hands raised to grip at your short, dark hair. You pulled and let go, face contorted from the pain in your scalp and in your heart, he didn't understand what you meant, though. At least not entirely. And the way you said it scared him. It looked like you were battling with your mind, unable to think through the dark forest in your head but seconds passed and you gripped his shoulders, it happened so fast that he almost didn't realise it, "I-... I have to..."

"Wait, [Name]!"

He didn't get to say anything more before you had sprinted off, determined to not get caught this time.

Kuroo approached Kenma, as did Taketora, Fukunaga and Morisuke and while Kuroo laid a single hand on his friend's shoulder, Taketora was glaring at the spot that you had just been occupying, not angered at the boy, but at the situation that had just been dropped on you. How you pulled away from Kenma and the others like you really didn't have anyone but yourself.

"He cares about you more than anyone, we can all see that." The ace broke the silence and continued, "And he's strong so maybe he just needs to settle this himself... but he'll come back to ya."

Because no one could deny the chemistry between Kenma and yourself. Kenma's frown deepened because he knew that but he thought you would let him be there for you.

Kuroo squeezed Kenma's shoulder, the reassurance a bit more meaningful and knowing than his teammates' verbal encouragement.

_"You know... you look at him a lot."_

_You glanced away from Kenma to see your friend also looking at him, and then to you. Kenma had been standing with Kuroo, the taller boy holding a volleyball as he spoke to the smaller boy and by the look on Kuroo's face, you could tell he had been whining about something. The look of stubborn annoyance on Kenma's face was amusing, you found that you didn't want to look away from it._

_"Yeah, they're my friends.." you replied because it was obvious, "we're pretty close."_

_You knew your friend knew that because you had been placed in a different class than Kenma and Kuroo was in the year above you. So while Kenma and yourself were separated, you had made some friends of your own in your class, "I meant-"_

_"But you're like alwa~ys looking at him, that smaller guy!" Another friend nudged you obnoxiously and you tried to dodge it, raising a brow, "It's whatever, man, we're just good friends."_

_For some reason, panic flared in your chest for a second before the topic was no longer about you and instead about the new volume of your friend's favourite manga that had been released._

_"Why do you always look at him like that?"_

_Weeks later, you felt a dreading sense of deja vu and snapped your gaze to your friend. Again, Kenma had been hanging with Kuroo but before that, the three of you had been chatting for a bit. You could see that Kenma tended to get pretty shy when he had to talk to someone he didn't know so the buddies from your class stayed just like that, buddies from your class._

_"Huh?"_

_You questioned nonchalantly, unaware of what he may have been thinking._

_"You and that dude, Kenma? You're always looking at him but you always look like.." He trailed off, awkwardly, his face twisting into something that made you slightly defensive, like he was annoyed._

_"Like you have a crush on him!" Your other friend cut in and fake gagged right before laughing like a hyena that made the whole group shake into laughter. You joined in, "No way, dude!" Your hands shaking, clammy, behind your back._

_The siren rang, Kenma walked back to his class after bidding you a soft goodbye with a sweet smile,_

_"Dude, are you sure you're not like... gay?"_

_They had been acting rowdy in class, messing around and talking about anime. One of them had caught the small yet tender smile on your face, his own twisting to mild disgust. It seemed like your affections for your best friend were deeper than you had realised._ _And you figured, what harm could it do?_

_"Uhm, yeah... actually, kind of..."_

_Hesitant, your voice lowered and you raised a shaky hand to the back of your neck, rubbing at the heated skin and at the buzzed hair as you dragged your hand up and over your head._

_"What!? For real!?"_

_You expected the shock, it brought a crooked smile to your face as you nodded a bit more confidently._

_"You're seriously a fag?"_

_Your face dropped._

_"That's so gross!"_

_"I-wai-" Raising a tentative hand as if to defend yourself from their verbal onslaught, you tried to lean closer in order to make sure it stayed between the four of you. Nobody else really had to know, but you figured it would be okay if only they knew._

_"Ew, freak, are you trying to kiss me?!"_

_"Back up!"_

_"You better not have been thinking that disgusting shit about me!"_

_You didn't get it, "What? No, I-"_

_They didn't listen. They kept going, louder and louder until everyone in class heard. Until the boys actively distanced themselves and the girls looked at you like you were some wild animal in a zoo enclosure. They teased you for liking boys, they mockingly flirted with you to make everyone laugh and they told you to just be straight, stop being dumb and just be straight, stop liking boys and just like girls, it was that simple. Stop being a freak._

_"Mum..."_

_She hummed and paused eating to see that you had barely had a bite, furrowing her brows when you hadn't even tasted the Hamburg steak, "what's wrong?"_

_Their words flashed through your mind endlessly, echoing like a great, big warning telling you to stop and be quiet, lest it happen in your own home, too._

_You wanted to believe in your mum, though._

_"I... I like Kenma."_

_You could've choked on the air you breathed from the thick sensation in the back of your throat that held you frozen and terrified. Your mum was very familiar with Kenma, the three of you; Kuroo, Kenma and yourself, had gone to each other's houses so many times that it was simply a comfortable routine by now. The grip on your chopsticks tightened tenfold, the utensils absolutely trembling in your grip. And it felt like you were starting to lose your breath, like you had exhaled your last breath with that single confession and could no longer inhale. Your eyes didn't move from the steak right below your nose, heart thumping unbelievably loud in your ears._

"Hey..." murmuring, you caught sight of a girl, staring to ensure she was who you thought she was. 

And lo and behold, it was her. Those wide eyes and that cute, little smile may have worked on your classmates but you just weren't drawn in by that kind of cuteness. You could recognise that face anywhere, the way it burned through your memories and let you clearly see the true instigator here. Of course. It was so obvious. It had to be her.

_"HEY!"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _( ͡❛ ͜ʖ ͡❛)✌_
> 
> _I'm gonna try and finish this fic!_
> 
> _also, what are we feeling about a lil smut later? I love soft, wholesome smut (๑ >◡<๑)_


	11. eleven x twenty

_"Oh~ and? Have you told him?"_

_When you were sure your mind was playing tricks on you, your mum's joyous and cheerful tone almost knocked you off of your seat. The chopsticks clattered onto the table from your sudden slack grip and she paused to see what was wrong. Perhaps just now, she had realised just how hard it was for you to confess what you did. Even when it made her so happy._

_"H-Huh? Wha-"_

_The trembling of your chin warned the both of you of the oncoming tears and you didn't bother trying too hard to restrain them when your heart was hurting so much. How could her simple response cause such a tsunami of emotions to erupt to the point where you could barely reply or think. More than the people at school, you were absolutely terrified of what your own mum would think and say about you. But that didn't happen. So it all fell out because you couldn't understand how the people who you had been hanging around with for so long during junior high could turn on you because of such a thing._

_Blubbering about childishly and lost, your broken voice managed to get across to her, wondering why everyone thought you were a freak, and why it was so disgusting to like your best friend as you did. The more you spoke, the more your mum's face fell into heartbreak and rage._

_"Oh, honey..." Her eyes were shining with unshed tears, she reached over to hold your hand, feeling absolutely defeated to witness her son feeling so alone and in despair, "I promise there is nothing wrong with you. Some people are mean and horrible, they need time understanding things that they haven't seen before but that does not excuse the things they did and said." She passed you a napkin, "You're still [Name], you're still my precious son and I'll always love you, alright?"_

_"Some people may be really mean but others will understand and accept you, those are the people that you should associate yourself with, okay? People who don't get it may take some time to understand and others won't, it's just how people are, you know? But above all that, you don't need everyone's validation, [Name], so don't think about what others think and be happy for yourself."_

_"What about Kenma?" You couldn't help choking it out,_

_"I can't say anything for him," your mum smiled, "but even if it's only platonically, I'm sure he adores you."_

_"HEY!"_

The frustration and immovable rage of not exactly knowing what to do to fix this showed on your face when the two girls turned to see who was calling out towards them. The one you were talking to stared, her eyes widening exponentially and she gripped the sides of her skirt in anxiousness though you barely registered the nervous gesture. She thankfully stayed put and waited for you to approach her in the middle of the hall on the way to the school building. The other nameless girl stood by a bit and watched as if eager to watch some kind of drama go down. Even when your knees trembled a bit for yourself, you just couldn't let this go when you recalled the fact that your boyfriend's name had come up amongst the rumours.

"[Name]-kun, I-"

"No," your hard stare pinned her down and shut her mouth, " _you_ listen to me."

The air around the two of you seemed to drop a few degrees.

"I told you and I tried to be as sincere and as gentle as I could be." She leaned back slightly in fear, your voice didn't raise in volume but it felt like it held so much weight that she couldn't do anything but listen. Everything you said came straight from your chest, stern and not messing around in the slightest.

"I told you I wasn't attracted to you and I said we could be friends if you wanted to. I-"

"You didn't even tell her why you were turning her down!" 

Her friend piped up from the side, her voice smug and defiant. There was a cold and calculating look in her eyes that almost faltered from your glare. 

"Chi-chan, stop!" The girl before you squeaked and turned back to you quickly, "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean for this to happen, I-"

"I can't date you because I have a boyfriend and he's the only one I want."

...

Two years ago this silence would've kicked the flight or fight senses in you to make a break for it and hide. This time, it was different because you weren't afraid anymore. The girl standing on the side gasped audibly yet the girl before you bowed shortly and immediately answered, "I understand, I'm so sorry! I-I'll," her eyes, panicked and in disbelief, struck to the other girl watching pointedly, before turning back to you, "I swear I didn't mean for this to happen... Even without being told..." her shoulders sagged in defeat, "It's so clear to see how much you and Kenma-kun care for each other... I'm sorry, I guess I was just... jealous of him. But I'll fix this, okay?" 

Raising a single brow, you were almost sceptical of how oddly smoothly that went, especially when you turned to walk away just to have her call your name to tell you one last thing, 

"You guys make a great couple."

Wandering aimlessly around the school for a bit, you couldn't help feeling exhausted and kind of disorientated. And don't even get you started on the guilt and complete regret of what you had done to Kenma. Running away like a coward instead of listening to him and even running away from Kuroo and the others, too... it was like you hadn't even grown up from junior high when everyone treated you like you had the plague and called you so many mean things. The memories made your teeth squeeze together to make your jaw clench, fists clenching in the pockets of your slightly sagging pants.

And Kenma... You just felt so deprived and alone right now, also mixed with the fact that you were ashamed, you were way too embarrassed to go back to him feeling like this. The only people in school were the people in clubs and even then, a lot of them were either on the sports field outside or in classrooms so the place felt pretty secluded. 

You were beyond relieved to be able to clear all that shit up but when it all came down to it, they were dumb rumours and they were exactly the types of things that your mum had been talking about years ago when you came out to her, the things she said about people always having something to say but you should only worry about the people you cared about. And Kuroo said that no one in the club would care about looking at you differently just because of your sexuality.

You really shouldn't have reacted the way you did.

Now, you really just wanted to cuddle Kenma and tell him how much you adored him and you wanted him to cup your jaw in his hands and only look at you. As you walked around a little more, you decided to take your time and head back to the volleyball gym so that you could wait outside and sit on the ground while listening to yells, the sound of shoes squeaking against the floor and the ball slapping against hands or the ground. And maybe it was because of the exhaustion from what happened or maybe it was because you were relieved you had gotten to the root of the rumours, but sitting on the ground on the sandy dirt was comfortable enough to make your eyes slip closed.

_"[Name]."_

_Junior high, third-year Kenma approached his best friend carefully. He didn't know how he should act around you, especially when he knew you were upset because of what had been going around at school. You looked so small and so troubled, he didn't want to do nor say anything to make it worse, but he wanted to be next to you, he wanted to think that maybe he could help you._

_"I'm sorry, Kenma... it's all my fault."_

_You couldn't even look at him. Squeezing your fists closed until they turned white._

_Kenma frowned, something squeezing painfully in his chest and he didn't like having to look down at you as you sat on the sand behind the janitors shed so he lowered down in front of you, disliking how you turned your head away to make sure you couldn't look at him._

_"I'm not mad."_

_He wanted to say more. He didn't know how much he could say, he didn't know how he could properly get across to you. He looked from your short hair that was shining in the midday sunlight and to your biceps, thin but still with some muscle present (one of his favourite things about you) and he had to bypass your forearm that was firm and tanned because he undeniably loved that too. Instead, his eyes locked onto your hands and how they were clenched so tightly._

_He reached forward, slow and silent, the only sound surrounding the two of you being the trees swaying in the breeze. The blunt nail of his pointer finger skimmed across the front of your hand, the sensation making goosebumps rise along your forearms as you shivered and snapped your gaze up. He didn't pull away, keeping his gaze on your hands when he instantly noticed the way your grip had loosened, he didn't know he had that effect on you and now that he had seen it, he felt breathless._

_"Kenma..." your voice cracked, as if you were on the verge of tears, it certainly felt like it from the way your chest was feeling constricted and your thoughts were muddled, "what they're saying is true."_

_And the words fell from Kenma's pink lips, "I like you."_

_Like how flowers like the sun, how rains loves the concrete and how cats love napping all day in the sun, he likes you._

"[Name]"

You felt the blunt nail grazing across the top of your hand before you heard the smooth and quiet voice. Eyes opening slowly, blinking rapidly to wave away the tiredness in your bones, you smacked your lips together and poked your tongue out to get rid of the dryness. He said your name again, his fingers still on your hand like he was too shy to actually grab it but he didn't want to pull away either. A dopey smile came across your lips.

"I'm sorry."

He shook his head slightly, you almost missed it and he stood back up and reached his arm out to you so you could grab it and get pulled up (even if it was mostly you helping yourself and merely holding Kenma's hand just because it was there) and from there, you easily pulled him into you so you could wrap your arm around his shoulders and have his body slide right by yours, feeling his warmth on you, "I'm sorry, Kenma. I mean it, it won't happen again, I love you."

"Yes, Yes, I know, we can talk about this later." He turns and you see Kuroo, Morisuke and Taketora waiting for the two of you. The silence, thankfully, only lasting a mere second before Kuroo grinned to which you made the same face, "I saved the day, boys."

"You're all good, then?" Taketora wondered gruffly. Huffing, you slapped the ace's shoulder playfully and nodded, though you were still unwilling to let go of Kenma so he was pulled along with you though you saw that he wasn't opposed to it.

"Of course I am, you know me!" He watched your smile as if he wanted to catch the lie as you turned to reassure Morisuke as well, "this chick confessed to me and I said I didn't like her and apparently that wasn't enough for her _friend_ so she thought spreading all that shit would do make her feel better or something... I don't know, I don't get girls."

"Eh!?? Was she cute?!" Taketora yelled, causing Kuroo to click his tongue from the volume and Kenma to flinch. Morisuke got a sour look on his face, "I don't care, honestly." 

"Well, I know _you_ don't but I just mean.. in general, y'know... I'm kinda jealous!"

"Hu~h," smirking, you squeezing Kenma for a second before returning to normally holding him, "I guess she was then, but why do you say that? About me?"

He looked at you like it was completely obvious, and maybe it was, "Well, you know... you and Kenma are pretty much connected by the hip! So I can't really imagine you being around someone other than him..." he scratched at his head like he was really thinking about how to answer that, making you laugh shortly before deciding to separate from the group, "well, with that being said, I'm gonna be stealing Kenma away this _fine_ evening, see you guys later!"

What a coincidence that it was Friday so you could take your boyfriend out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _yall have some things you wanna see happen? i have some mundane-kinda stuff but its kinda smooth sailing from here lol_


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